Document and Entity Information - shares	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2016	Jul. 20, 2016
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	ARQULE INC
Entity Central Index Key	0001019695
Trading Symbol	arql
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		71,106,954
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2016
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2